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Page 6, Thursday, July I spent last Sunday atWashago. At least it. The locals have They cal 1it attempt- Actually I was on the way up to my parents' place at Severn Bridge when I drove by the rapids below the small falls at Washago. There were a half a dozenkids standing on top of the bridge girders trying to get up the nerve to plungethe30 feet into the green water. From the roadway I couldn't see the rapids but after i drove by I made a u- turn and went back more out of curiosity than anything else. When I got out of the carandhadacloser look i saw a couple of the kids shooting the rapids. On e kid yelled, "come on in, the water is really warm. " He then threw himselif into the rapids and disappeared. I thought, there's no way old me, whose bones are brittle and who puffs going up thetwo steps into the office, will shoot those rapids especially without a boat. That's why the locals call it attempted s u i c i d e because you shoot the rapids without a boat. POLITICALLY UNCOOL Af ter reaaing t h e recent comments of Mayor Des Newman in Oshawa's 'This Week' ('Library in Town Hall Perfectly Ideal'), one ponders the full impact of CHUM radio personality John Gilbert's accusation that Des Newman is no t in support of the people of his own town. The library's use of the present town hall1 is of course, still pending the Ontario Municipal Board's decision on the p r o posed Rossland Road town h a I . If t h e Ontario Municipal Board DOES agree with the proposal, it will ta ke eight to nine months to construct thenew municipal and police buildings. The municipal election is December 4 this year, Newman is back in the run- ning - and obviously self assured of being re-elected. A s'trong, vibrant personality, the Whitby Mayor has always had the fort- i t u d e to stand by his convictions - an attractive qual ity in a municipal leader. Maîntaining that the library is "per- fectly ideal" while the library's future is tied up in the same parcel as the op- posed Rossiand Road municipal police complex is n ot only turning a deaf ear ta h i s own electorate, for a politician as pa ins tak ing ly polishe das Newman i s, i tis sho w in ga ttal lack ofpoiitical 'cool'. BIRD'S CENTENNIAL PARK - Under The Big Top CARNIVAL WEEK-END NOON TO MIDNIGHT German Food Nightly Entertainment - BAVARIAN BAND - "GEMUETLICHKEIT" Sponsored by Whitby Lions Club Ail proceeds for Tickets at the door Community Service or advance sales from Work any Lions member. EYE VIEW /M OUAIS h ooting the rapids 4me AMBASSADOR SST 2 DOOR HARDTOP 668-2262. BASELINE ROAD AT WHITBY-PICKERING TOWNLINE I watched the kids and the trick is to work your way ups.tream as far as you cangowithout being bowled over by the sheer power of the water rushing down- stream. Once you've gotten as far upstream as you can go, you find a rock to stand on, get your balance and then fi ing your- set out into the boiling water. The theory is that if you take a deep breath and holdit you're bound to float, un i1e s s , of course, a rock punctures your lungs. I don't know why but I went back to the car andchanged into my suit and en- tered the water below the rapids. Sure enough the water was warm and it was a real treat to swim in such clean water. It had the colour of mountain water and it made for a very refreshing swim. Soon, the swimming got boring so i thought I would just wander upstream. After watching thekids for a while I got up the nerve to take a crackat the rapids myself. With a small prayer to anybody who might be 1istening and a tremendous jump I vvoundup in themiddleof the snar- ling rapids. It was after the first thrèe feet I dis- covered you have to hold your feet up level oryou wili1 get these nasty scrapes andbruises. I let the current carry me across the river to the opposite shore and I walked into the shallow water to inspect the damage. My feet and legs didn't look too bat- tered and the thrill of being swept at a great speed through the rapids seemed to overcome any pain from bruises. I figured that somewhere in Toronto my insurance man must have burning ears b e cause I was remembering how de- i ighted he appeared when I tol d him about myscubaactivities. Hewill probably be ecstatic when he 1earns about my shoot- Heard's Taxi 668-3732 Radio Equipped & Direct .Line at Amoid's Market 115 Brock St. N. Fer Year -s---- 150 PERRY ST. WHITiY Open Evenings - Tuesday and Thursday IVAN'S (Ladies) H AIR STY LING 1400 DUNDAS ST. E. -- WHIT8Y "If you want to look your best" Whitby scarborough (416))668-4321 (416) 439-0241 MEET YOUR FRIENDS AT THE BAVARIAN BEER GARDEN s. , J- YOUR GLENDALE DEALER INVITES YOU TO 'TAKE A LOOK' 'o GLENDALE MOBILE HOMES THIS WEEKS SPECIAL GLENDELLE 19' GLENDETTE 17.5 TANDEM AXLE TANDEM - FULLY EQUIPPED TRAVEL TRAILER $3595 $4o0 LUXURY LIVING AT ECONOMICAL PRICE Stop in where vacations commence NORTH ROCK MOTOR SALES LTD. 507-516 $ROCK ST N. WNITBY MILE NORTH 0F MANCHIESTER 668-91721ANK FINANCIN 985-3372 SATEoNyonDI Pemium Bualy Fuel Dil 4 668-3341 M [BERNES MOTOR SALES. T ha t 's r ight, shooting the rapids that's what I call another name for i t. ed suicid-e. American Motors Fi 27, 1972, WHITBY FREE PRESS ing the rapids without a boat. But anyway, one trip led to another and before I knew it I was shooting the rapids with the best of them. Occasion- ally I overheard some smart aleck kid saying, "Who is thatbigkidover there?" When I had my fMIl of the rapids I cl imbed up to the bridge and took a few jumps off into the water. No fancy dives or anything, just a few cannonballs and a couple of feetfirst, throw yourself in, type dives. After wr iting las t week about how you can1t go back I was pleased last Sunday to discover a spot that is more like the 'oi swimmin hole' than any other spot I have seen for years. And you know, it's free too! So if you happen to be driving up Highway 69 this weekend and you pass the Washago River and yOLu see a big kid shooting the river or leaping off a bridge after a blood curdling scream, wave because it's probably me. It's themostwater fun I've had since i took up Scuba and l'm going to get my licks inwhileî1 can. Next week 'Il write my room number in my column so you can sendmesome mail while I'm in the hos- pital.